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Section 172(Case Diary)- An analysis
INTRODUCTION
Under Section 172 Cr.P.C., each Police Officer leading the examination will keep up a record of investigation done every day in a Case Diary in the recommended Form. Case Diaries are imperative to record the investigation completed by an Investigating Officer. Any Court may send for the Case Diaries of a case under request or preliminary in such Court and may utilize such diary, not as proof for the situation, yet to help it in such request or preliminary. It sets out that each cop making an investigation ought to keep up a detailed journal of his examination.
CONSTITUENTS OF CASE DIARY
The Case Diary which is a record of everyday investigation of a case, will contain all the subtleties including when the information reached the Investigating Officer, at which time the examination initiated and reached a conclusion, the spots or destinations visited by him and an announcement of actuality and conditions built up through examination. Case Diaries ought to contain just points of interest of real advances taken or progress made in the examination. Addresses, both present and permanent of the witnesses and all other significant subtleties ought to be constantly recorded in the Case Diaries.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STATION DIARY, GENERAL DIARY, CASE DIARY
The Station Dairy is the record of each activity, development, occurrence identified with Police station working, officials and police officers developments, and episodes in police headquarters zone, enlistment of FIR, etc.
A General Diary (GD) is made when any sort of grievance is held up and the police enter the subtleties in their records. From that point, if the police accept that there is some prima facie proof of a cognizable offense being submitted, it is enrolled as a FIR.
The Case Diary is the careful record of everything that happens during the length of the entire investigation. The Case Diary is just a record of the day-to-today examination of the Investigating Officer to discover the conditions learned through the examination.
USE OF CASE DIARY
As An Aid To Investigation
A police, who examined a criminal case either completely or incompletely, is qualified to look into the 'case diary' containing the subtleties of the examination and revive his memory while deposing as an witness before the court, the Madras High Court has said on account of Muthuraman vs. State Rep. by Inspector of Police . A diary under this section can't be utilized as evidence of any date or articulation contained in that, yet it tends to be utilized to help the court in the inquiry or trial by empowering it to find implies for additional explanation of questions which need clearing up before justice is served. The judge can't take cognizance or issue process against accused based on the materials contained in the case diary alone, except if contained in the report under section 173 as was held in the case of G.P. Sharma vs. State of MP.
As An Aid To Refresh Memory
In the case of Shamushul Kanwar vs State of U.P. it was held that neither the accused, nor his counsel, as per sub-section (3), will be qualified to inspect the diary. Possibly right given there under is that if the Police Officer who made the passages in the diary utilizes it to revive his memory or if the Court utilizes it to contradict such witness, by activity of Section 145 of the Evidence Act, it will be utilized to contradict such witnesses i.e., Investigation official. It is accordingly, obvious that except if the Officer or the Court utilizes it either to invigorate the memory or repudiating the examining Officer as past proclamation under Section 161 that too in the wake of drawing his consideration thereto as is ordered under Section 145 of the Evidence Act.
MANIPULATION OF CASE DIARY
In many instances it is found that the investigating officer do not bother to maintain a case diary and even if they do, it is barely maintained in a proper way. These leads to manipulation of case diary as in many cases, police while investigation, come across a crucial point but as they do not maintain a diary they tend to forget that crucial point which in turn could have aided the trial.
On the other hand it is found that due to lack of maintenance of a case diary, sometimes the pages come out as a result of which many crucial information could be lost.
CONCLUSION
As is apparent a case diary is an indispensable piece of the investigation technique as additionally in the trial procedure. It helps during the trial of the case as well as goes about as a shield to ensure that appropriate investigation has been done in understanding to the arrangements set down under section 172 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
